Such a good timing! Astro season starts for me in a couple of weeks and this year I will build my own powerstation and now you have solved my problem with the connection! Thank you Chad!

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Great!!

Amazing!! Thanks a lot!! You making our life's so much easier!!

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

I try!

Great info Chad, thanks!

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Glad to help

Hi Chad yet another informative video. You briefly mentioned a Tobsun Dc-dc converter. I would be interested to see how you have this setup on your rig. Thanks again for great ideas

Another great video! I've been planning on doing some imaging from my Sisters place in the country it's not much darker than my home site but the view to the south, east and west is unobstructed adding hours to my imaging time on certain targets. I had a pretty good idea what I was going to do but now I can do it with confidence, Thanks!!!

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Great!

Awesome video sir!!

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Thanks again! :)

Great stuff - this is pretty much exactly the solution I came to. I live in Bortle 8-9 and have a narrow view of the sky and I'm not comfortable leaving gear out unattended, so almost all my imaging now is done remotely and a solution like this was basically necessary. The travel router is much more straightforward than trying to get your miniPC hosting its own network.

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

I just like the simplicity of either plugging it in or not, but not having to do anything else. If you need it, it’s there, and if you don’t, it’s not.

You really are a wonderful teacher here. I did get my mini pc hotspot working for remote use, although a bit convoluted and I lack 100% confidence it’s always going to work so I’m going to get the mini router as a backup in case I have issues. I like the way you know what kinds of issues the typical person is going to face, and don’t treat us like windows wonks or IT experts. Being an EE doesn’t make me a software wiz are windows networking wonk and i pull my hair out on this stuff…. Anyway, great instructional video!

Definitely given me some things to think about for when I eventually get to take my rig away on holiday, thanks!

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Plan ahead and test, test, test! :)

Thanks!

Thanks Chad for these videos. They have been very instructive and useful for me and significantly time saving. Speaking about this video main topic, why shouldn’t be sufficient to set up an hotspot on your mini-pc btu an additional component is required instead (i.e. the mini travel router) ? Thanks.

I would love to see a video on using NINA's plugin for optimum exposure lengths. There is one but it was in-correct. Mainly, Is it worth using? Glad to see ya back mate!

Loved your presentation. I will almost assuredly get the voltage regulator/ step up converter. Since I am using an ASIAir Plus, which has its own WiFi hotspot, I can connect directly to it from my iPad. Range is a little limited but 30’ is about right. As such, getting the travel router may not be necessary EXCEPT that I might be able to use it as a range extender.

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Good idea. Or even use an Ethernet cable between 1 device and the travel router LAN port and have the other device be WiFi. Of course, nobody likes to have to be at the end of a long cable, but sometimes it can help.

This series has been great. My Mele3q goes to work tonight! I have one comment about the voltage regulator. I used that exact model and it worked as described. However I had one bad experience with it. In my battery box I knew of no way to shut the system down or at least loudly warn when the battery was severely drained. During my imaging session the voltage regulator just kept pulling current until it actually ruined the lead acid deep cycle battery. Further, in the last few minutes of 'life' there were voltage spikes that actually damaged my AsiAir. I had to have it repaired. Do you know if there is some sort of unit that would politely cut off the current at a predetermined level? I do admit to only being a user, not an expert.

I love your videos! I have a question though; my backyard is nowhere near close enough to my router to be able to pick up wifi. Do you suggest any sort of extender or mesh network to get that coverage in a yard? I've been doing intranet connectivity like this currently, but I'd still have to walk outside quite a bit to get to my stuff.

Fantastic video. I have most of what you recommended already and just got a new SD card for the Wyze v3 to do the Wyze self-hosted. Our San Diego Astronomy Association is having its annual star party in Julian< CA in 10 days. I want to get the Wyze cam set up for that.

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Great, it’s really easy to get going. Just make sure you have the camera connected via your app to the correct wireless network before you change it to self hosted. You can always change it back by the way.

great and clear video. if you use wifi for connecting to your mount (with a wifi dongle to reduce cables) then an extra step maybe needed to also tell your mount to connect to the router. An alternative though in this case is to use the actual wifi dongle as the remote station if it cannot connect to your home network.

@PatriotAstro

10 ай бұрын

Definitely. Everything Wi-Fi will need to be set up to connect to that new network as well.

Thanks so much again for your great videos on using our equipment in unique ways. One issue I had with my v3 camera and travel router is that the camera would not connect only if the "Enable Self Hosted Mode" is set to False! Not set to True as you described. Any idea of what I may have done incorrectly? It worked without modding the wz_mini_hack conf file again.

I use a Gl.iNet router next to an Intel NUC with a short 300mm Ethernet cable (and powered by USB from NUC). That Ethernet cable makes it really reliable. I use an 11” iPad Pro with pencil and connect to the portable router. I use Microsoft Remote Desktop. The router can easily be configured to attach to a home network. I’ve set it up for multiple home networks with different locations. You can also out in the field, if in mobile range, gain internet with a USB cable from your mobile and use the mobile data from the mobile if you really need to download a forgotten driver etc in the field.

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Yep, there are multiple modes, such as tethering and client-side connections as well. I do agree too, that you could connect to one of the two devices via an ethernet cable if desired. I’ve done that before with a short 6 inch ethernet cable, and it worked like a dream.

I finally have all the necessary components to set this up, Chad … albeit with a different mini pc and portable router … but I’m wondering why Curtis at Astronomy Tips & Reviews with Curtis ( Remote Wi-Fi for EAA and Astrophotography) seems to have done it differently. It seems like he didn’t connect the Ethernet cable to his home network at all … but connected it directly to his mini pc … and, as a matter of fact kept it connected there permanently. What are the advantages of doing it the way you describe here?

Another great video, thanks, I shall watch again since there is a lot of information in the video. I have been using the GL.iNet GL-AR300M16-Ext (with antennas) and the MeLe for a while now. One problem that I always have experienced is a sudden disconnect between the PC and the router, so, I am now hardwiring the router and the PC and have had no issues. Before that approach I had set myself up with the mini display and mini keyboard so that don't have to kill a session that I no longer have access to, but the deal with that mini display was that it had to be connected to the PC at the beginning and it could not be either disconnected down the road and reconnected, or connected just when I felt I needed it. In my case the hardwiring of the router to the ethernet port of the PC has solved those problems.

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

A short Ethernet cable is not a bad idea. I had considered the EXT model myself so I could swap the antenna for something directional with more range if needed but in the end, I decided no moving parts was less likely for me to break anything. :)

@f.k.6151

11 ай бұрын

@@PatriotAstro The range is definitely too short. At a star party recently, I could not connect from my car which was parked 64-feet away. On my to do list is to find out if I can get a signal-booster of some kind. Any ideas?

I really enjoyed this and your previous videos. I can most things setup and working correctly, except for my camera. As soon as I change to stand alone mode "true" and disconnect the internet it fails to allow the app to connect. oh well, everything else works and I dont have to watch my scope all night. 😂 Update: My fault, I thought that the app on my phone would continue to work in stand alone,,,The PC provides me with the video.. PERFECT. 👍

This is close to the same solution I came up with, but I use GL-iNets’ GL-AXT1800-c93 travel router. The GL-AXT1800 is more expensive but I already had one for vacation travel. It also has two LAN Ethernet ports that I can use as hardware connections to the Mini PC and my laptop if nothing else works.

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

There are a lot of travel router options out there for sure. I’ve got a couple others myself. The extra ethernet port can be nice if needed.

I bought a MELE Quiter 4. I have 116 light frames to transfer. I plugged a fast USB 3 Card reader in with the same XQD card my Nikon camera uses (very speedy transferring to my photography computer). I remotely opened two file windows for the Q3 and XQD. Trying to transfer by dragging and dropping. Glacially slow. Says it will take more than a day to transfer 116 light frames. Your recommendations appreciated. Also, can NINA just store the images directly to the Nikon camera?

Another great video! Thank-you. You mentioned a Raspberry Pi, wouldn't Astroberry be a great alternative in the field?

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

It is certainly low power but I’m just not a fan of the solution as compared to NINA. (Or even the ASIAir). I’d rather use the same solution at both home and away (for me NINA). Plus, I don’t want to have to learn other tools, maintain other tools and versions, etc. But it is a nice solution and for anyone is using it, I think that’s great.

@michaelwong4530

11 ай бұрын

@@PatriotAstro You explanation makes sense, as I am a huge fan of standardization. As I am learning the Astro-software tools still, I am sticking with NINA as well. We need a "NINA-pi"... Thank-you again, your videos are outstanding. You must be a Professor in your day job or Instructor.. 🙂

My solution is simply to use my smartphone or tablet as a mobile hot-spot / router and connect my mini pc to that. Then I can use a remote desktop connection on my phone / tablet, or I can connect a laptop to the hot-spot as well and remote in from there. The added bonus is that it will also provide Internet if I have service.

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Yes, that works too. I prefer to use the travel router because I want to be able to wander around or leave with my cell phone and ensure that everything is staying connected and still running, including my Wyze camera. Plus occasionally, I am using the remote copy Plug-in to back up files over the same network, which has to remain available.

I'm using a TP-Link AC750 Wireless Wi-Fi Travel Router (TL-WR902AC) and that works fine for me. The trick is to set up a "guest" network, otherwise it is looking for a working network to connect to.

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Any of the PCs that have pre-connected to the network we set up should work just fine. Without an Internet connection on the travel router, it does take a minute for the travel router to accept connections while it waits to see if Internet’s available first. Usually I’m setting everything up and don’t even notice that it’s doing that. I try not to use the guest network only because I don’t want someone who may have an infected computer connecting to my network. I don’t want to have to set up my miniPC again if I don’t have to. I already do it way too often to demo new computers, features, and run through videos. :-) LOL But as I always say, if whatever you’re using is working, there’s no reason to change.

@larryfine4719

11 ай бұрын

@@PatriotAstroI've retried the main network and disabled the guest side of it. Looks like it is now working (although it was a bit fiddly to get going).

This are reasons that AM5 and ASAir are so popular. What are you going if your mount is MyT? It operates on 48V. For whole night, I will need about 1500Wh battery. Alternatively, get RV.

@MrSummitville

26 күн бұрын

If you have a 48 Volt MyT mount and you want to image when off-grid then follow the directions in your manual. Yes, it can be done. But your 48 volt issue is irrelevant to this video.

In other words the travel router is acting like a hotspot? I have everything connected to the "T" as you described on your video and after I unplug my travel router from my ethernet connection, neither the control pc or the mini pc would be able to communicate with each other, they both connect to the travel router though, what I am doing wrong?

Can the Remote Desktop be done over Google Remote Desktop the same way ?

Is there an easy method to switch between home router and remote router somehow? Like maybe some 'fallback' wifi through wz mini hacks? I'd like to use it at home as well as in the field, obviously when I'm hope I want it to be connected to the home router, and when I'm out I want it to connect to the remote router, I don't see myself doing that setup each time, even though it doesn't take long, it's quite annoying. I wonder if there might be some nice solution to that. Thanks anyhow for your great tutorials

@PatriotAstro

9 ай бұрын

Unfortunately, not really. I know what you mean about the swap back and forth, it can be painful. Your computers can all do this, but not the camera. That part of the logic/code in the camera is the native Wyze software which expects the camera to be in a static location. Other than jumping through hoops each time, I have 2 'workarounds': 1. Get another camera. For the price, over the long run, it may not be a bad option. Or 2. Get an ethernet adapter supported by WZ Mini Hacks and use an ethernet cable for the camera. That cable will always connect assuming you have a port to connect to. So, 'maybe' some workarounds depending on your setup, but nothing native in the software from either wz mini hacks or Wyze.

@msacco

9 ай бұрын

@@PatriotAstro Thanks for the fast reply, the issue I have with the first workaround is that I already have multiple cameras and would like to take all of them with me ^_^ I think I have possibly found some workaround, still involves some steps but they're easy and fast and can be done pretty much anywhere which I really like, so no preparation is needed and even if something was not done properly this can still be used. So let's say that I have 3 possible wifis that I want to be able to use, home, travel, hotspot. I'll connect all of my cameras to my home network, setup whatever I need in the wyze camera, that's pretty much everything for home use. Let's say I want to now travel somewhere and want the cameras with me, I can just via ssh or by just going to the config file in the sd card change the self hosted mode to true, then all I need to do is generate a QR code with the new wifi settings I need which can be done through here: codepen . io / ril3y / full / gXyzmO / (hope this won't be removed), remove spaces ofc. Then I can generate a QR code for each network and just save them on my phone or wherever works best for whoever uses it. Now I'm in self hosted mode and can connect to any wifi I want, like the travel wifi or my mobile hotspot wifi, just clicking the setup button and scanning it, it will then connect and everything will work besides the wyze app ofc. Now the nice part is that this process can also be 'reversed', once you want to go back to your app, you need to scan the home wifi QR Code, once connected again via ssh or sd card change the self hosted mode to false(you must first scan the QR code to the original wifi that was used in the app to connect so when you restart it's already on the right wifi), then just reboot the camera and the app will work again. With this I can pretty easily always change the wifi to whatever I need, and in the worst case if needed I can still have the app working. An ethernet cable might be a good solution too, not sure how much this cable costs. BTW, is there any benefit of using near/far IR lights when doing timelapse on the top of the scope? since it shouldn't really hit anything I would assume not, but just wondering. Thanks :)

@msacco

9 ай бұрын

@@PatriotAstro Ok disregard my last comment, it seems like there's such an easy and amazing way to solve all of that easily! Via SSH: echo -n "yourWifiSid" > /configs/.wifissid echo -n "yourWifiPasswd" > /configs/.wifipasswd * note - nano does not work well here since nano adds NL to the file. I guess doing nano -L for no NL might work too, haven't tried. Then just reboot and that's it...And it also works with the app as well so you could switch between any wifi network and still have RTSP and connection to the app as well as long as you have internet connection, so don't even need to use self hosted mode. Seems to work really well for me.

Do you know if Chrome Remote Desktop would work over this network? Or does Google Chrome Desktop need an actual internet connection

I don't tend to take my rig(s) out into the wilderness much since I live in a pretty dark area, but something about this setup appeals to me and wonder if it would work. Here's the situation: if I want to use two telescopes at the same time, I don't currently have a way to control them from inside my house, since my WiFi won't reach to where they operate. Instead, I have a long ethernet cable that I plug into one of the ASIAIRs and thus can view/control that one, but the other one I just have to leave be and hope that all is well. I wonder if I could instead plug the ethernet into the travel router, and then use it to connect to my ASIAIRs either wirelessly or with an ethernet cable, and thus be able to switch between them in my app? Or is there another, simpler, solution?

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

You could do what you mention easily. Plug the travel router into the end of the ethernet cable and then anything near that device could communicate wirelessly, and you could connect to both no problem.

Why not setup the Mele 3 as a hot spot?

@poruatokin

2 ай бұрын

Agreed, the method described is unnecessarily complicated.

Is it possible to make the Astro pc a hotspot while away from any internet connectivity? Or is it the travel router the only option available?

@poruatokin

2 ай бұрын

The travel router is a waste of time and money. You can easily get 10-25 meters of range if the Astro PC is running as a hot spot.

@N6APG

2 ай бұрын

@@poruatokin thanks, luckily for me I moved to the entire ZWO ecosystem, no complaints since then. Connection is a snap and never fails.

@poruatokin

2 ай бұрын

@@N6APG As long as the ASI Air does everything you need, then that's fine, glad you found a solution. But for me, a Mini PC running NINA etc is way more powerful and flexible in the long run, plus I can always give it a secondary use as a media server etc. in my home when technology moves on.

I ran into a problem. I did everything from your 2 videos successfully. I was able to get the camera running in NINA with the field router while it was connected to the internet through my house router. On my first night away to a dark site without internet, the camera refused to connect to the wyze app and NINA with that same field router. Apparently, it needs internet to connect even after being successfully initiated. Or I am missing something...

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Did you change the entry in the wz_mini.conf file for self-hosted to true and then save it? Double check that the entry was saved properly. If that is not set, the camera will not come online if Internet is not detected.

@tempusfugit6820

11 ай бұрын

Ok I tried to change "self hosted" to "true" and it didn't work. I did it with Notepad ++ . It was even worse as I could not even connect the camera to the Wyse app. I reverted the "self hosted" to "false" and I could again connect the cam to the Wyse app but only with the field router connected to my home router. I did everything else as you did in the video. What else could it be?

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

@@tempusfugit6820 you may need to send me some screenshots via email. When you are self hosted, it is not unexpected for you not to be able to use the app to see the camera. That’s the point of self hosted. It’s one way or the other. Next time you have everything started up, send me a screenshot of the self hosted and RTSP sections of your configuration file, a screenshot your connected clients as they are listed in your travel router. And a screenshot of the lan IP bindings page from the travel router. As well as a screenshot of the attempted RTSP connection from within Nina. I’d like to see the complete URL. You could also include a screenshot from your Wyze app of the settings page for the camera, but you could only get this screenshot while Internet connected and not self hosted (. So, if you can get it, great, if not, don’t worry about it yet.)

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Also, I looked in the video and saw that I did change self hosted to true at 16:19 of that video. (It’s just one word in the configuration file so it would’ve been easy to miss while watching.)

@tempusfugit6820

11 ай бұрын

​@@PatriotAstroHi Chad. Did you get my email? I sent it 2 days ago. Hopefully it didn't land in your spam mail...

That’s a whole lot off work. I always have to go on location for shooting. I just bring my laptop and phone with me. Connect everything to my laptop and I can start. And in case astap doesn’t work I have my phone for online plate solving and that works just fine.

@PatriotAstro

11 ай бұрын

Surprisingly, when you’re doing it, it’s really not bad. I just have to slow down and talk a lot to make sure I’m connecting the dots for most people. The set up of the router took me about 2 minutes (plus 3 more for the firmware update). From that point, I just take it with me and plug it in and it takes zero seconds in the field. :) And now I am not tethered to my telescope, but can go sit in a car or tent or anywhere. It’s really amazingly quite fast and you wouldn’t even realize that this little device was in your kit. It’s so small.

I hope all is well as you’ve stopped posting again.

There’s one issue I ran into when I had no internet. Microsoft calls home when you use Remote Desktop. The connection would drop. I recommend changing the mini pc to local login. Seems to be working so far.

@PatriotAstro

10 ай бұрын

Yeah, that’s how I build mine in the videos with local login. Although, I don’t think I ever specifically call it out, I just do it that way. Great point.

Seems overly complicated, why not just run your mini PC on the telescope as a hot spot and RDP into from your Control PC?

Is it then possible to get messages via pushover (NINA) on my mobile?